Viking Moorings Inks 2-Year Agreement with Deep Sea Anchors

- Viking Moorings Inks 2-Year Agreement with Deep Sea Anchors

Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Viking Moorings

Viking Moorings has signed a two-year agreement with Norwegian company, Deep Sea Anchors (DSA) to supply its industry leading deep water 'torpedo' anchors to mooring installations worldwide. The announcement was made at Offshore Europe in Aberdeen where Viking Moorings is exhibiting in the Deep Water Zone.

The agreement, which will cover all regions of the world outside Norway, will allow Viking Moorings to provide an even greater breadth of integrated anchoring solutions to its clients with, once a suitable project is identified, an exclusive agreement with DSA put in place to supply it anchors.

The Deep Penetrating Anchor (DPA), also known as the 'torpedo' anchor, is a dynamically installed anchor which is released freely from a predetermined height over the seabed using gravity as the installation force. The anchor penetrates well below the mudline and sets into stiff clay sediments providing a secure and cost effective anchoring solution irrespective of water depths and allowing for both taut leg and catenary mooring installations.

Other benefits include simplified installation, precise positioning and the elimination of the need for hydraulic and electrical lines which are often used for traditional anchor installations.

"Viking is all about providing greater innovation, greater choice and the optimal mooring solution for our customers," said Viking Moorings Chief Executive – Mooring Solutions, Wolfgang Wandl.

"Having considered a number of our recent mooring installations to be ideal for torpedo anchoring, the formal teaming up with DSA, one of the few providers of such anchors, was an obvious fit. There's no better forum to showcase these new capabilities than the Deep Water Zone and Offshore Europe this year and we look forward to a mutually collaborative arrangement with DSA."

"Deep Sea Anchors is very pleased to have signed this agreement with Viking Moorings," said Ivar Erdal, CEO of Deep Sea Anchors. "Working with Viking Moorings is a perfect match for us, combining our unique anchoring solutions for soft seabed and deep waters with Viking Moorings' comprehensive mooring services and dedicated team of experts.

He continued, "Viking Moorings' knowledge and presence in many countries and regions where our DPA's can be applied with success and to the great benefit of clients was a major reason for entering into this agreement. Being a small and focused company, market entrance remains a challenge - a challenge which can be made easier through this agreement."

Using gravity, the DPA™ anchor starts its descent under cable control before accelerating at up to 100 kilometers per hour for the final 75 meter drop, shooting the anchor deep into the seabed sediments to attain sufficient holding capacity. The anchor penetrates typically 25-35m into stiff clay sediments thus allowing for taut leg as well as catenary mooring. The anchors are not affected by waves and can be deployed at depths of between 500 and 3000 meters. Deep Sea Anchors is based in Trondheim, Norway.

Viking Moorings provides total mooring solutions to operators and drilling contractors, consisting of initial mooring design and analysis, rig move procedures, risk assessments and safety approvals, equipment rental, installation and support, chain inspection, spooling services and logistics services, marine sales, repair and maintenance.

Through a comprehensive evaluation of seabed conditions, Viking Moorings decides upon the optimal anchoring solution for each client whether it be a DPA or more traditional anchoring solution. Other anchors that Viking Moorings supplies to its customers includes the Vryhof Stevpris MK6 and MK 5 anchors, the Vryhof Stevshark anchor, the Stevin anchor, the Bruce Twin Shank and Dennla MK4 anchors and a number of others.

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Deep Down Secures Large Carousel Orders

- Deep Down Secures Large Carousel Order

Thursday, July 07, 2011
Deep Down Inc.

Deep Down has just completed the assembly and test running of its own 3,200 MT carousel located at Core Industries near Mobile, Alabama and has recently been awarded two more large carousel contracts in excess of $8 million. Deep Down is presently under full construction of a 3,000 MT onshore carousel system with a delivery date at the end of the third quarter 2011 for one of the world’s leading umbilical manufacturers.

The 2nd carousel awarded, a 3,500 MT offshore system will be DNV certified and will be completed in the first quarter of 2012 for an international installation contractor. As an extra bonus, Deep Down has just undergone and passed several audits by our clients and safety organizations supporting the safety, and quality of our company and the upcoming construction of the carousels. Both carousels will be manufactured in Channelview, Texas, then placed on a barge and assembled for our clients in Mobile, Alabama.

Ronald E. Smith, Chief Executive Officer stated, "We have always had innovative approaches to handling terminations, transporting and putting umbilicals into the water. This award winning carousel system, as described in the Deep Down news release on May 18, 2011 is exciting and its compact nature allows our clients to place a large amount of product on an optimum foot print which opens the doors for both onshore and offshore applications. We believe these orders will have a significant impact on the Company’s future growth. We have several more systems quoted where the delivery schedules are ideal."

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Deep Sea Takes Delivery of Odfjell Drillship

- Deep Sea Takes Delivery of Odfjell Drillship

Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Odfjell Drilling AS

Deep Sea Metro Ltd. has taken delivery of the drillship Deepsea Metro I from Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI).

Chairman of Odfjell Offshore Ltd. Simen Lieungh stated, "Delivery has been according to plan. The collaboration with the yard has been excellent and we acknowledge their great effort. With the delivery of this state of the art vessel, we are now looking forward to the operations ahead with BG Group and Woodside Energy."

The vessel is a highly efficient, state-of-the-art 6th generation drillship. It is equipped with the latest technology and with focus on zero discharge and other green rig features.

Deepsea Metro I is the first of two ultra deepwater drillships ordered by Deep Sea Metro Ltd. The second vessel Deepsea Metro II is scheduled for delivery from HHI end of November 2011. Deepsea Metro II has a contract with Petrobras.

The Metrostar Group retains 60 percent ownership in Deepsea Metro I & II and Odfjell Offshore Ltd. has a 40 percent ownership. Odfjell Drilling is responsible for the construction follow-up, management and operation of the vessels.

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Small Oil Cos Survive GOM's Deep Waters

Small Oil Cos Survive GOM's Deep Waters

Thursday, April 21, 2011
Dow Jones Newswires
by Ryan Dezember

When the staggering costs of BP's deep-water Gulf of Mexico oil spill became clear, investors feared that small, independent oil and natural-gas producers would have to leave the area.

These companies, relatively small by energy-industry standards, didn't have pockets as deep as those of the big oil companies--a necessity in the event of another spill.

But, surprisingly, few companies have abandoned their offshore positions a year after the deadly Deepwater Horizon blast, which killed 11 and unleashed the largest marine oil spill in U.S. history.

Not only will they remain, some small producers vow, but they intend to double down on their bets on deep-water drilling in the U.S. Gulf.

"We're staying," said Al Reese Jr., chief financial officer of ATP Oil & Gas, in an interview.

The Houston-based company, which has a market capitalization of less than $1 billion, last year saw its shares plummet due to its presence in the Gulf's deep water.

But on March 18, when the government announced it had approved a deep-water drilling permit for ATP, shares jumped, ending the day 4.6% higher.

Fellow oil company W&T Offshore bought deep-water properties from Shell and Total after the spill. Plains Exploration & Production Co. (PXP) recently decided to keep its deep-water assets, which it had sought to sell after the spill.

"The Gulf is going to get stronger," W&T Chief Executive Tracy Krohn said in a recent meeting with investors.

Throughout the history of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico's energy industry, small companies have played a big role in making the basin one of the world's most productive oil and natural-gas basins. In the 1990s, as production declined in the Gulf's heavily explored shallow waters, scrappy independent companies were among the first to venture out to the outer continental shelf and prove that there were big reserves in depths greater than 1,000 feet.

But the Deepwater Horizon disaster, for which BP expects to pay about $40 billion, raised what were already high stakes.

Only giants with global empires such as BP, ExxonMobil and Chevron could absorb such a hit. Indeed, many independent companies couldn't afford spill bills such as the ones for billions of dollars that BP has tried to make its partners Anadarko and Mitsui Oil Exploration pay for the Deepwater Horizon clean-up. According to Deloitte, only 10 of the roughly 300 companies operating in the Gulf have a market capitalization of more than $30 billion and about 40% are worth less than $5 billion.

Tudor Pickering Holt & Co. analyst David Pursell said that, while there has been no broad exodus of independent producers, their future in the Gulf's deep waters remains unclear. "The questions are kind of still unanswered," Pursell said. "Can these guys get access to [spill] containment equipment? Can they get access to enough insurance?"

Producers said it has been challenging, but they have found affordable insurance, mainly because BP was self-insured and didn't roil the market with massive claims. And the industry has developed a pair of spill-containment cooperatives that have allowed producers to show regulators they can control a runaway well.

One lingering fear: lawmakers setting prohibitively high liability limits. After the Deepwater Horizon disaster, there was talk in Congress about raising oil companies' liability cap under the Oil Pollution Act from $75 million to billions of dollars. That change never happened--but it doesn't mean it never could.

"It's possible to write legislation that effectively keeps all the little independents out of the Gulf," said Bob Zahradnik, director of the Southern Ute tribe's Growth Fund, which owns oil and gas explorer Red Willow Production Co.

Red Willow, formed by the tribe in 1992 to buy back natural-gas leases on its Colorado reservation, dove into the Gulf's deep water in 2006. It now has interests in 21 deep-water leases.

Typically Red Willow, which joins with Houston Energy to locate offshore prospects, bids on production blocks at government auctions and then brings in larger partners to help it to develop the reservoirs.

"There's a niche for people like us," said Zahradnik, formerly of Exxon Mobil, adding that the company looks for 50-million to 100-million barrel oilfields, which Big Oil considers small fry but which are big game for independents. "I mean, 50 million barrels is $5 billion."

In late February, U.S. regulators approved the first deep-water drilling permit since BP's spill, allowing independent oil company Noble Energy to drill what began as a Red Willow prospect in about 6,500 feet of water.

Though its interest has been reduced to 20.25% after selling larger stakes to Noble and BP, Red Willow expects the well, on which work began last week, to produce a "flash of cash" that it can reinvest in longer-lasting, less-risky onshore ventures, said Rob Voorhees, Red Willow's president and chief operating officer.

"You spend a lot of money and get a little in return onshore," Voorhees said. In deep water, however, "we have one well that's going to swing the nature of our business."

TGS Strengthens PMS Position with Stingray Acquisition

TGS Strengthens PMS Position with Stingray Acquisition

Monday, April 11, 2011
TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Co. ASA

TGS has entered into an agreement to acquire 100% of the shares of Stingray Geophysical Limited (Stingray). The transaction will provide TGS with a strong position in the rapidly growing market for Permanent Reservoir Monitoring (PRM) solutions. The acquisition will substantially increase TGS' addressable market through access to production seismic spending from large international oil companies as well as national oil companies (NOCs), while maintaining its successful asset light model.

Robert Hobbs, CEO of TGS said, "The age of "easy to find" oil is over, forcing oil companies to increase investment in their existing fields to extend production and increase recovery factors. The acquisition of Stingray allows TGS to access a larger portion of the reservoir optimization market. The combination of TGS and Stingray will leverage both companies' strengths to create a powerful PRM offering to the industry."

Martin Bett, Managing Director of Stingray added, "TGS brings complementary capabilities, a global organization, established seismic project management skills and financial strength to Stingray. As a part of TGS, Stingray is now well positioned to deliver innovative PRM solutions that will assist our clients to increase production and reserves whilst decreasing risk and costs of their Enhanced Oil Recovery programs."

The 4D seismic market, of which PRM is an integral and increasing part, was estimated to be over USD 1 billion in 2010 with the majority of data being acquired by towed streamers (source: ODS PetroData). Expectations are for the 4D market to exceed USD 2.5 billion within the next four years (source: Stingray estimate). New PRM installations are expected to trend towards optical versus electrical solutions due to the expected increase in reliability and flexibility that this technology offers, especially in deep water.

The transferred assets include 11 employees and an extensive portfolio of intellectual property. All management team members and employees of Stingray will continue as employees of TGS.

The consideration for 100% of the shares is based on an initial payment of USD 45 million and incremental payments of up to USD 35 million based on the success in commercializing the technology.

The transaction is expected to complete in April 2011.